Washing machine



July 21, 1925.

W. L. RODGERS WASHING MACHINE Filed July 6, 1922 s Sheets-Sheet 1 FIBJ- WITNE$$ES & #5

July 21, 1925. 1,546,750

W. L. RODGERS WASHING MACHINE Filed July 1922 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 o o 1.1] M o T 7 62 -|-1a" i".vlT! 2 D Q [r v 53 riesKo' 1 f is 7 s} 1 67 t z "3/ 1 l l l g 5 FEES/5 I T l/' {I M 0 I 2 v7 l i I I Li . /NVEN7'0/?I WITNESSES z mw b n-ELM July 21, 1925. 1,546,750

w. RODGERS WASHING MACHINE Patented July 21, 1925.

WILLIAM L. RODGERS, F PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA.

WASHING MACHINE.

Application filed July 6,

To all whom it may concern Be it known that 1, WILLIAM L. RODGERS,

a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Pittsburgh, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Vashing Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to washing machines and particularly to an improved driving gearing therefor.

The object of the invention is to provide a gearing which. is simple and compact in its arrangement, which is entirely mounted in the gear-housing or casing, forming a unit therewith which may be readily attached to or removed from the frame of the machine.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a gearing which may be mounted in a unitary housing and as a unit upon a single side of the frame so as to position all of the driving mechanism and actuating devices to be used in connection with the machine in one convenient location.

It is also a special object of the invention to provide a gearing which may be easily disconnected from the driving motor and the washing cylinder and removed from the machine without disturbing the remaining parts.

It is still a further object of the invention to provide a mechanism of the character above referred to which contains the minimum number of parts, which is strong and durable, which is economical to manufacture and repair and which is highly elficient in operation.

These and other objects of theinvention will more readily appear when taken in connection with the following description and the appended claims.

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a washing machine showing the application of the improved gearing thereto; Fig. 2, an end eleration, with parts in section, of the machine shown in Fig. 1, illustrating the method of mounting the gear housing upon one of the side frame members and the mode of connecting the driving motor and gearing; Fig. 3, a side elevation on an enlarged scale of the gear housing with its cover removed; Fig. 4, a fragmentary detail sectional view taken on the line IVIV of Fig. 3; Fig. 5, a

1922. Serial No. 573,132.

detail sectional View taken on the line V-V of Fig. 3, also illustrating the removable connection between the rock shaft of the driving mechanism and the washing cylinder; and Fig. 6, a fragmentary detail sectional view of the clutch mechanism used in connection with the rock shaft.

The supporting frame of the machine comprises the side frame members 1, 2 and .the end members 3 and 4, the several members of the frame being suitably secured to each other by means of bolts indicated at 5. All of the frame members are preferably constructed of sheet metal, and for conveniently supporting the several parts and at the same time affording access thereto are shaped, as clearly shown in the drawings, the side member 2 being provided with a recess 6 at the lower portion thereof for a purpose to be presently described. Spanning the space between the end framemembers 3 and 4, is a transverse bar 7 which together with an angle bracket 8 attached to the side frame member I serve to support the base or platform 9 upon which the driving motor 10 is mounted. Preferably the motor employed is an electric motor, but it is obvious that any type of motor suitable forthe purpose may be employed. As shown in Fig. 2, the armature shaft of the motor is connected through the flexible couplings 11 and 11 to the inner extremity of the main driving shaft 12 of the driving gearing.

Removably attached to the exterior of the side frame member 1 is a gear housing or casing designated as a wholeby the reference numeral 13, which housing encloses all of the parts comprising the gearing and serves as a means in which to journal the several shafts forming a part thereof, the entire housing with its contained gearing being removable from the side frame member and machine as a unit, the housing being attached to the frame by means of suitable bolts fitting into bosses formed'upon the housing as clearly indicatedin the drawings.

The main driving shaft 12 is journallcd at its inner end in a boss 14 forming a part of the rear wall of the housing 13 and its outer extremity is journalled in a boss 15 formed upon the cover plate 16 of the housing, the driving shaft having formed thereon the worm 17. An upright shaft 18 1s suitably journalled in a step bearing 19 formed in the bottom wall of the housing and a bearing 20 provided by a boss forming a part of the top wall thereof. Fixed to the lower portion of the shaft 18 is a worm wheel 21 which meshes with the Worm 17 upon the drive shaft 12, the shaft 18 having fixed to its intermediate portion a bevel pinion 22 adapted to mesh with a bevel gear 23 rotatably mounted upon a stubeshaft 24 projecting within the interior of the housing. The stub shaft 24 has a reduced inner extremity 25 which is threaded for engagement by a nut 26 which serves to bind the shoulder formed between the enlarged and reduced sections of the stub shaft upon the opposite faces of the boss 27 forming a part of the inner wallof the housing.

The gear 23 is mounted upon the stub shaft 24 through means of an eccentric 28 fixed thereto by any suitable means as the pins 29, an aperture in the gear embracing a cylindrical extension 30 projecting from the face of the eccentric, the gear and eccentric being freely mounted upon the enlarged section of the shaft as a unit.

The rear wall of the housing 13 at its upper extremity is also provided with a bearing boss 31 formed thereon and projecting through an aperture 31' in the side frame member 1 in which the inner extremity of a rock shaft 32 is journalled, the outer ex- 40 of the clutch shifting tremity of a rock shaft being journalled in a recessed boss 33 formed on the cover plate 16. Loosely mounted upon the rock shaft 32 between the boss 31 and a squared section 34 of the shaft is a crank arm 35 which is pivotally connected by means of a pin 36 to one end of a connecting rod 37, the opposite end of which is provided with an eccentric strap 38 embracing the eccentric 28, previously described. The face of the crank arm 35 adjacent the squared portion 34 of the shaft 32 is provided with notches 36 serving as one member of a clutch device, the notches 36 being adapted to receive lugs 37 formed on a clutch collar 38 slidingly mounted upon the squared portion 34. The collar 38 is provided .with a peripheral groove 39 with which a swivelled finger mechanism cooperates. The clutch shifting-mechanism comprises an' actuating handle 41, a rotatable shaft 42 and crank arm 43, the finger 40 being attached to the crank arm, and theshaft 42 being rotatably journalled in a plate 44 fixed to the end of the housing 13. In order to retain the clutch shifting mechanism in a position to either retain; the parts of the clutch in engagement or out of engagement as desired, a spring pressed pin 45 adapt- I ed to seat in suitable spaced depressions 46 in the plate 44 is employed.

Fixed to the inner extremity of the rock shaft 32 is a trunnion block supporting arm 47. The member 47 is in the form of a crank arm being provided with a longitudinal slot extending substantially the full length thereof and a stop lug 48 adjacent its extreme end. The slot of the trunnion supporting arm is adapted to receive a suitably shaped trunnion block 45) projecting from the spider 50 attached to one side of the washing cylinder 51, the block 49 merely projecting within the slot of member 47 and resting upon the stop lug 48 so as to render the same readily removable therefrom upon bodily lifting the said cylinder from the frame in an obvious manner.

The upper portion of the bearing boss 20 is recessed as shown at 52 within which rests the lower extremity of a tubular housing surrounding the driving connections between the upper end of the shaft 18 and the mechanism for driving the wringer 54, the wringer together with its mechanism and attached parts being rotatably mounted in one wing of a bracket 54 attached to the side frame member 1, as at 56, and to the end frame member 4 as at 57. The wringer may be rotated to any desired position in the customary manner, being adapted to be locked in adjusted position by means of the screw bolt 58 provided with the hand wheel 59. In order to limit the rotation of the wringer mechanism in one direction a pawl and ratchet device consisting of the pivoted finger 60 and the recesses 61 is provided, and in order to reverse the direction of rotation of the wringer rolls the same is equipped with a reversing mechanism of Well known construction such as indicated at 62.

Mounted upon the side frame member 1 at one side of the gear housing 13 so as to be within easy reach of theoperator in actuating either the clutch handle 41 or the controlling elements of the wringer mechanism is a switch 63 for starting and stopping the electric motor 10.

The operation of the gearing is obvious from the above description. Briefly, it is as follows: The armature shaft of the motor 10 being connected through the flexible couplings 11, 11 to the main driving shaft 12 transmits power through the worm 17 and worm wheel 21 to the upright shaft 18, causing rotation of the bevel pinion 22, gear 23, and eccentric 28. Rotation of the eccentric is transformed through the connecting rod 37 and crank arm 35 into oscillatory movement of-the rock shaft 32, which through its connections with the washing cylinder 51 causes the same to be oscillated in a well ing cylinder, it is merely necessary to shift the handle 41 to move the clutch collar 38 into operative engagement with the face of the crank arm as shown in Fig, 5, or into a position in which the lugs 37 will be withdrawn from the recesses 36, as clearly shown in Fig. 6. Due to the fact that the switch 33 for starting and stopping the motor, the actuating handle 41 for the clutch controlling the actuating of the washing cylinder, and the controlling devices for the wringer mechanism are all located at one side of the machine and within easy reach of the operator, the entire operation of the machine may be easily controlled at all times.

All of the parts of the driving gearing are suitably mounted or journalled within a single gear housing 13, which housing is removably attached to the side framemember of the machine; and consequently may be readily removed as a unit Whenever it is desirable to replace the same by a new one or for purposes of repair. The driving gearing 1s removed by merely detaching the bolts securing the same to the frame, withdrawing the inner end of the shaft 12 from the motor shaft and loweringthe housing so as to separate the lower end of the housing 53 from the recess 52 in which it freely rests, the upper end of the shaft 18 bein readily disengaged from the shaft dependmg from the gearing of the wringer mechanism, these two shafts being normally engaged by 00- operating lugs and recesses formed on the adjacent ends thereof, as clearly illustrated by the dotted line shown in Fig. 3. The apertures provided in'the side frame member 1 for the reception of the several bearing bosses formed upon the rear wall of the gear housing are-of suflicient size to permit the parts projecting therethrough to be readily withdrawn upon removal of the gear housing from the frame. The recess 6, especially provided in the side frame member 2, not only reduces the quantity of material necessary to fabricate the same, but provides comparatively free access to the motor 10 and the several partsv for supporting it below the washing cylinder.

It is thus seen that the invention provides a driving gearing for washing machines which is simple in construction, compact, durable, economical to manufacture and repair, all parts of which are readily accessible, one Which may be easily attached to and removed from the machine as a unit,

and when assembled upon the washing machine in the manner set forth provides a machine having all actuating controls for the several parts conveniently arranged for'easy manipulation and control by the operator.

Although the preferred embodiment of the invention has been particularly illustrated and described as required by the patent statutes, it is obvious that many changes in details of construction in the several parts may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, and it is therefore not intended to limit the invention beyond that pa'rticularly pointed out and defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A gearing for washing machines comprising a housing, a drive shaft journalled therein, an upwardly extending shaft journalled in spaced apart bearings in the housing, driving connections between said shafts, a stub shaft stationarily fixed to the housing and rojecting within the same, a gear pro vided with an eccentric rotatably journalled on the stub shaft, a pinion on the upright shaft meshing therewith, asecond stub shaft rotatably mounted in the'housing, a. crank arm for actuating the second named stub shaft, and a connecting rod operatively connecting the eccentric and the said crank arm.

2. A gearing for washing machines comprising a housing, a drive shaft journalled therein, an upwardly extending shaft journalled in spaced apart bearings in the housing, driving connections between said shafts, a stationary stub shaft anchored to the housing and projecting within the same, a gear provided with an eccentric rotatably journalled on the stub shaft, a pinion on the up right shaft meshing therewith, a second stub shaft rotatably mounted in the housing provided With a portion non-circular in cross section and adapted to be attached to the cylinder of the machine, a crank arm one face of which forms a clutch member loosely mounted on the last named stub shaft, a. connecting rod operatively connecting the eccentric and crank arm, and a clutch collar slidingly mounted on the said non-circular portion adapted to be moved into and out of engagement with the clutch face of said crank arm, the entire gearing and housing forming an independent self-contained unitary assemblage.

3. A gearing for washing machines comprising a housing, a drive shaft journalled therein, an upwardly extending shaft journalled in bearings formed in the bottom and top walls of the housing, driving connections between said shafts, a pinion fixed to the shaft, the entire gearing and housing forming a separate self-contained unit.

4:. A washing machine comprising a frame provided with an opening therethrough, a cylinder rotatably mounted in the frame, a motor, driving gearing interposed between the motor and cylinder, the final driven element of the gearing being adapted to freely pass through the said opening and removably but operatively engaging the cylinder to actuate the same, a housing for said gearing removably attached to the exterior of the frame, said housing being adapted to be readily attached to and removed from the frame, the entire gearing being located within and journaled in the housing, both the gearing and said housing being freely removable as a unit from the frame and cylinder Without necessitating disassembly of the said gearing or frame.

5. A gearing for Washing machines comprising a single removable gear housing adapted to be attached to and removed from the frame of the machine, a drive shaft journalled in a bearing forming a part of the housing, a stationary stub shaft fixed to the housing and projecting Within the same, a gear rotatably mounted on the stub shaft, driving connections between the drive shaft and said gear, an eccentric also mounted upon the stub shaft fixed to the said gear, a rock shaft journalled in a bearing forming a part of the housing, a crank arm on the rock shaft, a connecting rod operatively con necting the eccentric and crank arm, a trunnion supporting arm fixed to one end of the rock shaft for removably receiving the trunnion block of the cylinder of the machine, all of said gearing being removable With the housing as a unit from the said frame.

In testimony whereof, I sign my name. WILLIAM L. RODGERS. 

